GIFT  OF 


v. 


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xN~lM-(, 


8061  '12  NVP  IVd 
"A  *N  'astioEiis 

•soig  pioi^o 


EXPERIENCE 


THE  TALE 

OF 

THEWIMPUS 


ERNEST  C.  WILSON 


<g 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/experiencetaleofOOwilsrich 


EXPERIENCE 

There  was  once  a  little  bird  call- 
ed me  Wimpus  and  all  day  long  he 
flew  about  among  me  tree  tops,  or 
paused  on  the  willow*  branches,  to  re- 
gale me  Lad$  Wimpuses  w*ith  stories 
of  his  great  untried  valor,  as  they  en- 
joyed their  afternoon  worms;  and  (lie 
Lad]?  Wimpuses  were  much  impressed 
with  me  great  valor  of  me  little  Wim- 
pus, and  w*ere  nev*er  more  happ;9  than 
w*hen  mey  listened  to  him  tell  of  me 
great  things  he  w*ould  do  when  me 
opportunity  presented  itself.  It  seems 
mat     he     w*as    possessed     of    a    most 


/IOt  cr  d\r\ 


wonderful  v*oice,  of  such  extraordinary 
Volume  and  intensity.  mat  if  Ke  w*ere 
once  to  use  its  full  strengm,  the  den- 
izens of  the  forest  w*ould  he  paralyzed 
with  fright  and  die  of  heart  failure, 
or  possibly  neuritis.  But  the  little 
Wimpus  had  a  big  heart  in  his  little 
body,  and  so  day  b$  day,  as  the 
temptation  to  try  his  voice  presented 
itself,  he  refrained  lest  he  should  de- 
populate the  sylvan  gropes.  He 
staged  his  fierce  impatience  and  con- 
tented himself  by  enjoying  the  sw*eet 
nectar  in  me  mroat  of  me  honey- 
suckle, which  he  could  reach  with  his 
long  bill,  and  sang  subdued  love-songs 
to  the  Lady  Wimpuses,  and  hadn't 
the  heart  to  destroy?  them  \Cith  his 
terrible  voice. 


And  men  one  da;9,  mere  came 
into  me  forest  .of  me  Wimpuses,  a 
great  soaring  eagle,  who  had  scarcely 
an$  \)oice  at  all,  and  me  Lad})  Wim- 
puses grev?  afraid  as  mey  saw  Kim 
from  afar,  and  observed  me^great  size 
of  his  talons  and  the  spread  of  his 
w^ngs.  OTnat  is,  mey  w*ere  afraid  un- 
til me$  remembered  me  little  Wim- 
pus  vJifh  me  big  voice  and  so  me^j)  all 
garnered  around  him  and  told  him  of 
me  devastator  w'ho  w*as  approaching. 
One  little  Wimpus  laughed  heartily 
w'hen  he  heard  meir  fears,  and  warn- 
ed them  to  stop  up  meir  ears  lest  he 
deafen  mem,  and  assured  mem  he 
•would  annihilate  me  invader  when  me 
time  came.  And  men  me  time  and 
me  eagle  bom  came  togemer  and  wim 


mem  came  me  opportunity  and  me 
little  Wimpus  thrust  out  his  little 
chest  and  opened  his  mouth  and  pre- 
pared to  scream;  but  somehow  some- 
thing Went  wrong  and  me  great  voice 
of  me  little  Wimpus  didn't  come  forth 
and  he  tried  again,  and  still  there  was 
only  a  little  gasping  noise  such  as  any- 
one vfould  expect  from  an  ordinan? 
Wimpus,  and  by  me  time  he  prepar- 
ed for  a  tliird  attempt  mere  wasn't 
any  little  Wimpus  left.  And  per- 
haps mat  is  wrr?  me  plaintive  cry  of 
me  Wimpuses  in  me  tree-tops  of  me 
sylvan  groves  is  heard  no  more,  and 
w*rr?  people  smile  when  meir  name  is 
mentioned. 

For  me   poor   little    Wimpus  had 


never  had  a  single  experience  in  his 
short  little  life,  and  had  no  vte})  of 
gauging  his  strength  of  lungs  except- 
ing by  his  strength  of  spirit,  wim 
which  it  ev^identh?  didn't  compare. 
So  if  I  were  like  Aesop,  me  Writer  of 
fables,  I  would  point  me  moral  in  me 
sad,  sad  ston?  of  me  Wimpus  w*ho 
had  never  had  an  experience,  and  it 
might  be  something  like  mis: 


DON'T  SHIRK  THE  EXPERIENCES 
WHICH  TEST  YOUR  STRENGTH, 
FOR  THEY  MAY  HELP  YOU  TO 
KNOW  YOURSELF,  THAN  WHICH 
THERE  IS  NO  GREATER  BLESSING, 
AND  PERHAPS  THEY  ARE  TO  PRE- 
PARE YOU  FOR  SOME  GREATER  EX- 
PERIENCE IN  YOUR  LIFE. 


Evidently  {here  is  no  greater 
lesson  in  me  experiences  which  life 
presents  than  mat  of  learning  to  know 
your  *  own  untried  capacity;"  for  to 
know  Yourself  is  to  know  God,  and 
thus  all  things.  Man  is  not  bound 
by  me  limits  of  his  strength,  but  rath- 
er h$  his  ignorance  of  what  those 
limits  are,  and  when  he  has  added  to 
his  faith  knowledge,  he  will  discover 
that  \tfhat  he  presumed  to  be  his  lim- 
itations were  only  fhe  clouds  of  his 
own  ignorance,  which  will  disappear 
and  fade  away  before  his  searching 
gaze  of  knowledge  and  Truth,  as  the 
piercing  rays  of  me  morning  sun  put 
to  rout  me  minions  of  me  night. 
Then  ma^  all  me  people  of  earth  re- 
vere and  honor    and    pa$    homage    to 


Kim,  an  J  look  up  to  Kim,  saying,  "Be- 
Kold  tKe  Man!**  for  at  last  will  be 
evolved  a  man  wKo  Kas  discovered 
Kimself;  wKo  Kas  explored  me  myster- 
ious, Kidden  realm  of  Kis  oxtfn  God- 
Kood,  and  l;as  emerged  triumpKant  to 
proclaim  His  own  Divinity. 


Fear  and  sKun  me  experiences 
w*KicK  present  fKemselves  to  3?ou,  and 
me$  will  Kaunt  $ou  and  drag  you 
dow*n  into  me  ver?  depflis  of  despair. 
Flee  from  mem  and  me$  will  pursue 
$ou.  You  ma$  mink  $ou  Kave  evad- 
ed mem,  and  rest  in  me  sw'eet  se- 
curity of  ignorance,  but  mey  ^ill  over- 
take you  and  me  longer  mey  Kave 
been  delated  me  more  terrific  will  be 
meir  crasK  as  fKe$  engulf  $ou.     Tney 


5»p-      \J 


will  become  attached  to  you  by  chains 
of  >>our  o^n  forging,  as  Dickens' 
"MARLEY"  was  weighted  doWn  by 
his  books  and  ledgers;  his  wealth  and 
his  greed;  his  penury  and  fhe  suffer- 
ing it  had  caused  others.  0"he  Law 
is  certain;  its  operation  unerring  and 
conceal  it  as  you  Will  your  fear  Will 
find  you  out.  For  as  long  as  you 
dread  any  experience  in  life,  just  so 
long  do  3?ou  need  mat  experience,  and 
it  will  come  to  2?ou  over  and  over 
again  until  $ou  have  discovered  fhe 
good  it  held  for  you,  and  become 
grateful  for  it.  Your  fear  Will  hold 
me  ming  feared   to  $ou. 


Lif. 


e     is     an     eternal      progression: 


merefo 


ore  claim   an 


d   know*    that     what- 


ever  comes  to  >>ou  is  $ours  by  v?hich 
to  grow  and  progress  and  achieve. 
Welcome  each  experience  as  a  lov*ed 
friend— disguised  perhaps  beyond  re- 
cognition—but a  friend,  notwithstand- 
ing, and  it  will  prov*e  to  be  so.  There 
are  no  accidents  in  Nature.  What- 
ever befalls  you  comes  to  you  because 
it  belongs  to  you,  because  somewhere 
in  me  subtle  soul-qualit^  which  we 
call  character,  mere  is  •  something  re- 
lated to  the  experience  you  have  at- 
tracted. If  there  is  nothing  of  com- 
bativeness  in  $our  nature,  you  cannot 
attract  strife.  If  your  soul  is  filled 
with  a  lasting  Peace,  discord  and  dis- 
sention  can  no  more  come  near  you, 
fhan  can  oil  and  water  mix.  If  you 
purge  from  your  soul  all  the   elements 


which  Vibrate     wim     disease     and  in- 

harmony,  mese  cannot  affect  you.  It 

is  only  {he  lodestone  mat  attracts  me 
steel. 


Experience 


is   one   o 


f  <h, 


e    means 


b$  which  mis  purgation  is  effected. 
Experiences  are  me  sacred,  purifying 
fires  tkat  remove  me  dross  from  me 
soul;  but  if  we  shun  and  dread  meir 
fire,  mey  will*  still  burn,  mough  me 
dross  will  remain.  It  is  not  mat  me 
experience  creates  quality  within  us: 
ramer  does  it  assist  in  bringing  mese 
attributes  into  manifestation. 

Our  greatest  dread,  al mough  nev- 
er or  seldom  expressed,  seems  to  be 
mat  in  bringing  out   me    gold    in    our 


I 


natures,  the  dross  will  also  be  discov- 
ered, and  we  seem  sometimes  to  dread 
development  for  mis  reason.  .  We 
haVe  much  vet  to  learn  of  the  laws 
of  Dame  Nature;  and  possibly  in  Ker 
code  of  values,  trie  dross  may  be  as 
important  and  Valuable  as  trie  gold. 
If  mis  is  not  so,  wky,  men,  has  Na- 
ture produced  so  much  more  _of  trie 
coarser  minerals  man  she  has  of  gold? 
TTiere  is  an  infinitely  greater  number 
of  weeds  spring  up  each  spring  man 
mere  are  Violets  and  roses.  We  are 
just  beginning  to  entertain  trie  idea 
mat  all  tnings  haVe  a  use,  aud  some- 
one has  said  that  "w^eeds  are  onh? 
God's  plants  for  which  man  has  not 
2?et  discovered  the  purpose." 


We  bemoan  me  fact  mat  w*e  are 
mrust,  by  birm,  into  a  life  not  of  our 
own  choosing,  and  subjected  to  ex- 
periences over  "rimicn  we  Kave  no  con- 
trol. We  cry  out  in  me  voice  of  me 
Wimpus  mat  Nature  is  unfair;  mat 
ske  is  partial.  And  yet  w*ho  can  say 
mat  we,  being  eternal,  imperishable 
souls,  existing  throughout  and  beyond 
all  time,  have  not  done  me  "mrust- 
ing"  ourselves!  And  to  whom  shall 
we  sa>)  Mature  is  partial?  The  one, 
w"ho,  like  me  Wimpus  has  nev*er  tried 
his  strengm  against  experience,  or  the 
one  who  has  been  thrust  into  the  very 
vortex  of  trying  events  to  try  his 
strength,  and  discover  himself!  Hlxere 
is  a  something  within  us  that  con- 
stantly asserts   that   we    are    somewhat 


better  tkan  tkat  w"kick  we  profess. 
We  state  Weakly  tkat  we  are  creatures 
of  Destiny,  Ckance  or  Fate,  mere  will 
o*  tke  w*isps,  blown  about  aimlessly 
on  tke  breezes  of  eternity,  and  our 
even?  otker  tkougkt  and  word  and 
action  gi\>e  our  statement  tke  lie.  We 
look  about  us  and  see  tkat  ever?  event 
of  life,  is  tke  result  of  an  Absolute 
Cause,  and  we  can  so  often  trace  its 
source  to  our  own  beings,  as  to  make 
reasonable  tke  kazard  tkat  tkere  may 
be  a  superior,  interior  self  witkin  us, 
far  w*iser  tkan  tke  kumble,  outer  self  w*e 
know\  wkick  guides  our  lives  into  me 
ckannels  of  expression  best  suited  for 
Growtk,  and  linfoldment  and  Progress. 


PUBLISHEO    BY  JOHN  W.    RING 

4328  ALABAMA  ST.  SAN  DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA. 

PRICE   FIFTEEN  CENTS 


481509 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


